4 Ways to Continue Sales After the Holidays
The days of Fall Savings, Thanksgiving Deals, Black Friday Blowouts, Holiday Specials, and End-of-Year Extravaganzas, are over and the “Holiday Hype” has come to an end. You may be wondering–what now? While it’s true that more than half of a business’s profits for the year can accrue during the 4th quarter, it is important to keep that momentum continuing into the new year. Here are 4 tips to help your business have a successful and prosperous new year!
Use the “New Year, New Beginnings” Strategy
The beginning of the year is traditionally the time for making a new start, breaking bad habits and forming good ones. Use those themes in your marketing to keep up your current momentum. Convince your potential customers that your product can help them achieve whatever goals they are setting for themselves. This isn’t limited to self-improvement for people; this can also apply to businesses. For example, if you sell office supplies, advertise those supplies as a way a business can organize for a successful upcoming year. The new beginnings mentality is also applicable to learning a new skill, starting a hobby, or renovating a home. Whatever it is that you are trying to sell, market it in such a way that it aligns with this ideal.
Have a Clearance Sale on Last Year’s Inventory
Do you still have leftover stock from last year? Don’t worry – shoppers have come to expect just one thing from retailers after the holidays: clearance. So take advantage of this and encourage post-holiday buying.
Along with clearance sales, offer different incentives to drive even more sales. By offering up-sells, you can prompt more shoppers to reach thresholds on purchase amounts. You could also offer volume pricing or bulk buying discounts. This works well on smaller items that can be used as supply stock-ups or as simple gifts throughout the next year. When it comes to shopping online, flat-rate or free shipping is always an enticing offer.
If you run a loyalty or rewards program you can offer incentives for purchases made in January to earn extra rewards. Double points are attractive, as are additional points for performing certain tasks. You might also want to discount gift cards or certificates to help build revenue more quickly.
Give Your Business a “Fresh Start”
Use the new year as an excuse to give your business a fresh start as well. The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to revamp your data lists. Make sure that your lists are current and up-to-date to ensure that you aren’t wasting effort (and money) reaching out to customers who have changed addresses, lifestyles, or are no longer in need of your services.
You can also take this opportunity to take a look back at all of the data you’ve been collecting and see what worked (and what didn’t.) Check out this article to discover tips on tracking how well your direct mail piece is performing. If you’ve noticed that a certain coupon brings in new customers regularly, keep using that! If another direct mail piece hasn’t seemed to have much of an impact, regroup and try again.
PrimeNet is always coming up with new, innovative direct mail pieces that are sure to stand out against the crowd. Perhaps if you tend to stick with mailing out self-mailers, you can switch to postcards. If postcards are a favorite of yours, try laminating your direct mail piece for an extra pop. Or try a new technique altogether – die cuts can be a creative way to capture attention.
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New Year, New Sales!
Although the holiday season has come to an end, don’t take for granted upcoming events that you can cash in on. In January, you can focus on winter themed events or fresh start savings. The Super Bowl, Valentine’s Day, and Presidents Day are all in February. Soon after, you can “Spring into Savings.” Anything can be marketed as a way to get customers interested in your products or services.
The overall message is to just keep going! If you stop building momentum, it’s hard to start again. Use these tips throughout the year and your profits will continue to snowball. Next thing you know, it will be time to plan for next year’s holiday season!
